Latest Conference Articles

Ulka Vaishampayan, MD, discusses the excitement surrounding PSMA radioligand therapy in the prostate cancer space.

A significantly longer overall survival was observed with olaparib in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer who had tumors with at least 1 alteration in BRCA1, BRCA2, or ATM, compared with those who received enzalutamide or abiraterone plus prednisone, according to research presented at the 21st Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology.

Treatment with enzalutamide in combination with androgen deprivation therapy led to a clinically meaningful decrease in the risk of death for patients with non-metastatic castration resistance prostate cancer.

In a presentation during the 21st Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology, Kara N. Maxwell, MD, PhD, expanded upon the available biomarkers for use in prostate cancer and how they can be applied at various points and for guiding toward which treatments can improve care of patients with prostate cancer.

Enzalutamide achieved both an improvement in progression-free survival and an increase in time to PSA progression compared with bicalutamide as treatment of patients with nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

In a subgroup of patients with high-grade, BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, the novel intravesical gene-mediated therapy nadofaragene firadenovec maintained its efficacy, according to a poster shared during the 21st Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology.

Declan Murphy, MD, discusses the current interest in using PSMA, following the FDA’s approval of Gallium 68 PSMA-11, which marks the first ever drug for PET imaging of PSMA-positive lesions in men with prostate cancer.

The novel first-in-class small molecule inhibitor of HIF-2α, PT2385 demonstrated the ability to stabilize disease with tolerable safety in patients with von Hippel-Lindau disease-associated clear cell renal cell carcinoma and non-renal tumors, according to results presented in a poster during the 21st Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology.

Neoadjuvant treatment with the PD-1 inhibitor nivolumab demonstrated tolerability in patients with nonmetastatic high-risk clear cell renal cell carcinoma in a phase 1 trial.

The incorporation of genomics into the classification and treatment decision-making process for lymphomas is possible; however, many obstacles have prevented the incorporation of sequencing into standard practice, according to Sandeep Dave, MD.

Clinicians are increasingly looking to big data and electronic medical records (EMR) data integration tools in support of clinical decision-making questions and processes for improved access and care for their patients with cancer.

Ryan C. DeCoste, MD, discusses how comprehensive genomic profiling can be used to identify rare subsets of patients with Merkel cell carcinoma.

Target capture next-generation sequencing, MassARRAY, and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction all effectively detected low frequency somatic epidermal growth factor receptor mutations in cell-free circulating tumor DNA from individuals with non–small cell lung cancer , according to a presentation at the AMP 2020 Annual Meeting and Expo.

In an interview with Targeted Oncology during the Association for Molecular Pathology 2020 Annual Meeting, Rachel Sparks, MD, discussed the findings observed in hematologic malignancies with the use of a new RNA-based NGS assay.

Victor Velculescu, MD, PhD, discusses the key takeaways regarding the use of liquid biopsy to detect cancer and a new cfDNA approach to detect cancer at earlier stages.

In an interview with Targeted Oncology during the 2020 Association for Molecular Pathology Annual Meeting, Ozge Ceyhan-Birsoy, PhD, discussed genetic testing methods for patients with hereditary predisposition and the molecular research underway at MSKCC to improve testing in this patient population.

Routine testing for the presence of TP53 mutations in myeloid neoplasms by sequencing will become an important part of routine care as TP53-targeting agents become available, according to a poster presented at the Association for Molecular Pathology 2020 Annual Meeting and Expo.

Alexander Drilon, MD, chief of Early Drug Development Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, discussed each of the recently approved agents used for the treatment of these tumors and presented a review of the data at the 15th Annual New York Lung Cancer Symposium.

As the field of lung cancers continues to lean further into the precision medicine era, KRAS G12C has become an emerging actionable target for which multiple therapies are under development, said Bob T. Li, MD.

Many challenges have arisen as a result of the coronavirus 2019 pandemic, which is still impacting nations across the world. In the United States, oncologists have initiated research to provide wider understanding of the virus and the threat it poses to patients with lung cancer.

Brett Simon, MD, PhD, discusses an ongoing program at his institution that aims to improve symptoms and outcomes for patients with lung cancer who have undergone surgery.

In an interview with Targeted Oncology, Tony S. K. Mok, MD, BMSc, FRCPC, FASCO, discussed the actionable mutations that have been identified in the lung cancer space, the agents that have been developed to target them, and the importance of genetic testing to provide personalized care.

Investigators of the CheckMate 920 trial found no differences in safety signals or responses with modified dosing of nivolumab and ipilimumab compared with the standard dose in patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma treated in the frontline.

During a keynote address for the International Kidney Cancer Symposium, William G. Kaelin Jr, MD, spoke of recent research on effective treatment with the ability to target von Hippel-Lindau disease–associated renal cell carcinoma. These drugs included immunotherapy, HIF-2α inhibitors, and CDK4/6 inhibitors, which may be the future of the treatment paradigm.

Tumor mutational burden has been correlated with response to immunotherapy use in patients treated with immune checkpoint blockade. However, use of this biomarker has been challenged along the way with various criticisms of validity and routine use.

Mark G. Kris, MD, discusses 1 of the major topics of discussion from the 15th Annual New York Lung Cancers Symposium, among other areas of focus at the meeting.

Findings from a phase 2 trial evaluating lenvatinib given at 2 different starting doses, 14 mg versus 18 mg, in combination with everolimus, suggest the lower dose is similar to the standard dose in terms of efficacy and safety with minimal differences observed between the 2 arms.

An important milestone in the treatment landscape of extensive-stage small cell lung cancer has been trials of first-line chemoimmunotherapy. However, a study that requires better understanding of the methods and can be used to determine patients who are likely to experience durable benefits to therapy is currently concentrated.

Significant overall survival and progression-free survival benefits were observed with combination regimens containing immunotherapy in combination with a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, along with tolerable safety in patients with renal cell carcinoma to Suzanne Cole, MD, FACP noted, however, that the cost of these combination can dim the light on the advantages.

Elizabeth Wulff-Burchfield, MD, advises physicians on how to make appropriate treatment decisions for patients with unresectable kidney cancer.